March 1, 2007, BusinessMirror, RP stocks have biggest drop in nine years; PLDT falls, by Mia Gonzalez and
March 2, 2007, Manila Standard, Courts told: Begin trial of Melo cases, by Fel V. Maragay,
March 2, 2007, Manila Standard, US: Reds behind killings, by Michael Caber,March 2, 2007, Manila Times, Military briefs Asian diplomats on killings, by Anthony Vargas,
March 8, 2007, Manila Standard, Killings create climate of impunity — US report, by Michael Caber,
March 8, 2007, Philippine Daily Inquirer, Killings create climate of impunity — US report, by Cynthia Balana and Michael Lim Ubac,
March 8, 2007, The Philippine Star, US gov’t hits RP’s unsolved killings, by Jose Katigbak and Pia-Lee Brago,
March 9, 2007, The Philippine Star, Palace takes as constructive criticism US report on killings,
March 12, 2007, The Philippine Star, US Senate starts RP killings probe, by Jess Diaz,
March 12, 2007, Philippine Daily Inquirer, Witness in Alston probe shot dead in Misamis Oriental, by Jeffrey M. Tupas,
March 9, 2007, The Philippine Star, Palace takes as constructive criticism US report on killings
March 14, 2007, Bloomberg, RP seen as most corrupt in Asia (1,476 expats polled on business climate in 13 economies) by M. Gonzalez,
March 14, 2007, Inquirer Agence France-Presse, RP ‘most corrupt’ in Asia — PERC, by Cyril Bonabente,
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March 1, 2007, BusinessMirror,
US, RP officials meet on offer of help in solving political slays, by Fernan Marasigan,
March 1, 2007 @ 4:50 pm
US Embassy officials met with the Task Force Usig on Wednesday and discussed the US government’s offer of assistance to find a solution to political killings.
At a conference with the task force led by Chief Supt. Geary Barias, US Embassy representatives Scot Marciel and Scott Pelart discussed details of possible areas of cooperation in solving cases of murdered activists and journalists in the country.
“On instructions of the DILG [interior department] Secretary Ronaldo Puno, and chief PNP [National Police], Director General Oscar Calderon, the PNP will form a committee that will study the possible areas of cooperation and assistance where the offer of the US government will fit in,” Barias said in a news conference at Camp Crame, Quezon City.
On Tuesday, US Ambassador Kirstie Kenney urged the government to pursue the investigation on the killings of militant personalities and journalists as a gesture of sincerity in resolving them.
Kenney refused to comment on the observation of United Nations Special Rapporteur Philip Alston that the government was “in a state of denial” on the issue of unsolved killings into activists and media personalities.
Kenney stressed the need for a continuous follow-up on the investigation into the murder cases.
Barias said US assistance may come as exchange of intelligence and technical facilities, particularly in the forensic examination of the victims’ remains.
Technical assistance, he added, may also involve advance finger- printing analysis to help identify the perpetrators.
“Certainly, this offer of the US Embassy for assistance will serve as a capacity-building measure and boost the efforts of Task Force Usig to investigate and prosecute cases,” Barias said
Relatedly, House Minority Leader Francis “Chiz” Escudero on Wednesday dared the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to accept the offer of help from the US government to solve extrajudicial killings, saying such a move will dispel suspicion that the death squads that conducted the assassinations, involving mostly leftist militants as victims, are under its employ.
According to Escudero, the US military justice system is replete with examples of court-martials and convictions of officers and soldiers who commit unacceptable military conduct, from Lt. William Calley, leader of a platoon that killed hundreds of old men, women, children and babies in My Lai, Vietnam, to Sgt. Paul Cortez, member of an airborne division, who along with four other soldiers raped and murdered a 14-year-old girl in Iraq.
But Escudero doubted that anything good could come out of the offer, saying the AFP has become notorious for stonewalling the issue instead of doing something about it.
He dismissed claims by the military that the extrajudicial executions were the handiwork of leftist groups.
“The military does not even make an attempt to supply evidence to support the allegations.” He also chided Gen. Hermogenes Esperon Jr., who called the crimes mysterious killings, not extrajudicial executions.–Fernan Marasigan, BusinessMirror
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________________________________________________________________________________by Mia Gonzalez
March 1, 2007 @ 5:20 pm
PHILIPPINE stocks fell by the most in nine years as Tuesday’s plunge in the Chinese stock market triggered a global equities selloff. Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. and Bank of the Philippine Islands slumped.
“This is really a spillover effect of what happened in China yesterday,” said Paul Garcia, who oversees $1.4 billion of assets as chief investment officer at ING Investment Management Philippines in Manila.
While the local share prices plunged 7.92 percent at the end of Wednesday’s trading in the stock market, analysts said, meanwhile, the Philippine market is strong enough to withstand the setback primarily caused by external issues.
“We have been waiting for that correction,” according to an analyst from RCBC Securities. “I think there was an overreaction on what happened in China and the comment made by former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan that the US economy might slip into a recession by the end of 2007.” The analyst said the local market remains strong because the fundamentals are solid. Full story of analysts’ take on the local markets on page B1.
The Philippine Stock Exchange Composite Index on Wednesday lost 263.84 points, or 7.9 percent, to close at 3067.45 at noon in Manila, its biggest one-day decline since January 9, 1998. The benchmark dropped for the first month in six, shedding 5.3 percent, which was the biggest monthly decline since March 2005.
It slumped as much as 10.2 percent earlier in the day. In the broader market, losers outnumbered gainers 159 to four, while six were unchanged in the broader market.
Malacañang on Wednesday expressed confidence that the country’s strong economic fundamentals would help the Philippine stock market withstand Wall Street’s fall.
Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said the Philippine stock market is “expected to recover in the next few days.”
“Considering that our country’s economic fundamentals are well in place and our economic figures are okay, what’s happening in the stock exchange trading in China and the US will not have too much negative impact on the stock exchange trading in the Philippines. It is expected to recover in the next few days,” he said.
In an interview with reporters, President Arroyo said that what is important is that even if developments in Wall Street would affect the Philippines, the Philippine economy would “continue to grow” because many companies are not publicly listed.
She noted that many of the country’s manufacturers are not publicly listed and do not rely on the stock market for capital.
At the close Wednesday, Philippine shares had fallen the furthest of any benchmark in the Asian region, because its market shuts at noon, which limited losses Tuesday. China’s key index plunged 9.2 percent Tuesday, the most in 10 years, as the government took measures to crack down on speculation that had driven shares to records.
“Those funds that were not able to sell yesterday because we only have a half-day of trading are giving their orders to sell today,” Garcia said.
Two weeks ago, the President urged Philippine firms to develop “good stock offerings” in view of expected increased investments after the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) gave the country good marks as an investment site. –Mia Gonzalez and Bloomberg, BusinessMirror
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by Fel V. Maragay,
March 2, 2007 @ 4:47 pm
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo wants the special criminal courts to start trial of summary killings of activists and journalists.
But it appears that the 99 special courts created by the Supreme Court out of the existing regional trial courts do not have enough cases to start with.
The Melo Commission has found out that out of 141 cases of summary killings of activists and journalists reported to Task Force Usig of the National Police, only 20 cases have been fully investigated and filed in court. Twenty-five others are still under preliminary investigation.
Impatient with the slow pace of the investigation, the President ordered the justice department and the Presidential Human Rights Committee to identify the cases that have already undergone preliminary investigation and ready for litigation by the special courts.
She also reminded Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez to assign highly qualified prosecutors to prosecute these high-priority cases.
“Due process is the watchword as we bring these killers to justice. Cases that are strong enough to be brought to court should be prosecuted effectively and immediately to instill confidence in the process we have put in place,” the President said.
The President issued her latest directive on this matter on the heels of the release of the US Country Report on Human Rights Practices, prepared by the US State Department.
The report on the Philippines said that in 2006, there were “a number of arbitrary, unlawful and extra-judicial killings apparently perpetrated by elements of the security services and of political killings, including killings of journalists by a variety of actors.
The report also said the New People’s Army killed local government officials, left-wing activists and civilians, including through the use of land mines.
Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye reiterated that the Arroyo administration is working hard to end extra-judicial killings even as he described the US country report as “a constructive criticism from a time-honored ally.”
“The Philippine government is carrying the agenda of President Arroyo on unexplained killings forward by setting up special courts, fielding special prosecutors, protecting witnesses and instituting internal controls within the military and police,” Bunye said.
He added that the government is increasing the legal, counter-propaganda and operational measures against the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army to end the trail of mass murder and mayhem the revolutionary left has inflicted upon the people.
Chief presidential legal counsel Sergio Apostol, whom the President assigned to follow-up on her directives to solve the summary killings, met yesterday with chairman Jose Melo of the Melo Commission and chairman Purificacion Quisumbing of the Commission on Human Rights to discuss the listing of cases of extra-judicial killings that are up for prosecution or already being tried before the courts.
Quisumbing insisted that the CHR has been investigating cases of extra-judicial killings for several years now and will continue to do so independently under its mandate without the need for any request from the administration or referral from the Melo Commission.–Fel V. Maragay, Manila Standard
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____________________________________________________________________________by Anthony Vargas, Manila Times
March 2, 2007 @ 4:49 pm
The military on Thursday briefed Asian diplomats on the wave of unsolved political killings after two damning reports implicated the nation’s top commanders.
Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said the closed-door briefing in Camp Aguinaldo was requested by ambassadors who wanted to “be enlightened on the context under which the so-called unexplained killings are happening.”
The meeting came a week after special UN Human Rights Commission Rapporteur Philip Alston alleged that rogue military personnel were behind most of the killings. Rights groups say over 800 people have been murdered since 2001.
The Melo Commission found circumstantial evidence linking some sections of the military to the deaths.
Alston reported the military was in denial over the killings, and urged a thorough investigation for the culprits to be brought to justice. He blamed a flawed antiinsurgency campaign that often also targeted civilians.
The military has consistently claimed that many of the killings were carried out by communist guerrillas purging their own ranks.
“They [ambassadors] must understand that the deaths could be blamed on the conflict, but we are not saying that these are being carried out by the armed services,” Ermita said.
He said organizations or groups allegedly being used as fronts by the communist New People’s Army (NPA) have used the killings as “propaganda fodder” to weaken support for the armed forces.
The Armed Forces has repeatedly said the number of victims is inflated by rights’ groups.
The military has insisted the victims are often either killed in internal rebel purges or slain in combat with Philippine troops.
President Arroyo has ordered the creation of special courts and the appointment of extra prosecutors to speed up the investigations.
Those included in the briefing were envoys from Association of Southeast Asian Nations as well as from India, Bangladesh and South Korea, officials said.
Ermita, a retired Army general, said that “front-organizations” were using extrajudicial killings as propaganda against the military.
Karapatan, a leftist human-rights group, has claimed it had recorded more than 700 cases of extrajudicial killings since Mrs. Arroyo assumed the presidency in 2001.
The Philippine National Police’s Task Force Usig lists only 100 cases.
–AFP and Anthony Vargas, Manila Times
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_________________________________________________________________________by Michael Caber, Manila Standard
March 8, 2007 @ 4:48 pm
THE United States government has criticized the communist New People’s Army for killing local government officials and ordinary civilians and for using land mines, which are banned by the United Nations.
“The NPA was also suspected in many of the killings of left-wing activists and has also used underage soldiers in combat roles,” the US says in its Country Report on Human Rights Practices of 2006, which it released yesterday.
“During the year, the NPA and [the terrorist Muslim group] Abu Sayyaf targeted children for recruitment as combatants and non-combatants,” the report says in its chapter on the Philippines.
“There were an estimated 2,000 child soldiers in the country. By mid-year, an International Labor Organization-led program demobilized and reintegrated into society 300 children. The [Abu Sayyaf] also recruited teenagers to fight and participate in its activities,” the report says.
It says a climate of impunity continues to encourage summary killings and other human rights abuses despite the Philippine government’s announcement that it would investigate and prosecute such cases.
“Many of these killings went unsolved and unpunished, contributing to a climate of impunity, despite intensified government efforts during the year to investigate and prosecute these cases,” the report says.
“Members of the security services committed acts of physical and psychological abuse on suspects and detainees, and there were instances of torture. Arbitrary or warrantless arrests and detentions were common. Trials were delayed and procedures were prolonged.”
Even journalists have not been spared from the killings, and some press unions and student groups had been classified as “enemies of the state.”
“Journalists continued to be murdered. The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines recorded 12 journalists killed during the year,” the report says.
It says prisoners awaiting trial and those already convicted were often held under primitive conditions. Corruption pervaded the criminal justice system, “including police, prosecutorial [and] judicial organs.”
“In addition to the killings mentioned above, left-wing and human rights activists were often subject to harassment by local security forces. Problems such as violence against women and abuse of children, child prostitution, trafficking in persons, child labor, and ineffective enforcement of worker rights were common,” the report says.
"Civilian authorities generally maintained effective control of the security forces; however, some elements of these security forces committed human rights abuses,” it says.
"Violence against women, both in and out of the home, remained a serious problem. Rape continued to be a problem, with most cases going unreported. During the year, the [police] reported 685 rape cases. There were reports of rape and sexual abuse of women in police or protective custody. Spousal rape and abuse are also illegal, but enforcement was ineffective.
"Prostitution was a widespread problem. Many women suffered exposure to violence through their recruitment, often through deception, into prostitution. Sex tourism and trafficking in persons for sexual exploitation and forced labor were serious problems.
"Child abuse remained a problem. The problem of foreign pedophiles continued, and the government continued to prosecute accused pedophiles vigorously. Some children also were victims of police abuse while in detention for committing minor crimes.
"Child prostitution continued to be a serious problem. During the year, the Department of Labor and Employment ordered the closure of three establishments for allegedly prostituting minors. The trials for these cases were ongoing at year’s end.” -Michael Caber, Manila Standard
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____________________________________________________________________by Cynthia Balana Michael Lim Ubac, Inquirer
March 8, 2007 @ 4:59 pm
MANILA, Philippines — Unlawful killings and the murder of journalists by various groups went unsolved and unpunished last year, contributing to the climate of impunity in the Philippines, the US State Department said in its annual global human rights report.The US Country Report on Human Rights Practices, covering 82 countries, is prepared by the US State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor and submitted every year to the US Congress. It was released Wednesday by the US Embassy in Manila.
The report on the Philippines said that in 2006 there were “a number of arbitrary, unlawful and extrajudicial killings apparently by elements of the security services and of political killings, including killings of journalists, by a variety of actors.”
It said many of these killings went unsolved despite intensified government efforts during the year to investigate and prosecute these cases. It said that investigation of cases from 2004 and 2005, including the killing of judges, were still ongoing.
Delayed trials
“Civilian authorities generally maintained effective control of the security forces; however, some elements of these security forces committed human rights abuses,” it said.
It said that arbitrary or warrantless arrests and detentions “were common.”
“Trials were delayed and procedures were prolonged. Prisoners awaiting trial and those already convicted were often held under primitive conditions. Corruption was a problem in all the institutions making up the criminal justice system, including police, prosecutorial and judicial organs,” it said.
The report also said the New People’s Army, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines, killed local government officials, left-wing activists and civilians, including through the use of land mines.
It said both the NPA and other terrorist groups used underage soldiers in combat roles, including bombing attacks.
The report also said vigilante groups conducted summary killings of suspected criminals in two major cities and local officials appeared to condone and even encourage them.
During a brief “state of emergency” in February 2006, the report noted some attempts to curtail the freedom of the press and the right of assembly.
Downplayed by Palace
Malacañang on Wednesday tried to downplay the US State Department report, with Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita saying it was just a “reminder” from a longtime ally.
“They only want to remind us” so that the issue will not be a thorn in the two countries’ relations, he said.
He pointed out that the country enjoyed a “long and fruitful” relationship with the United States, so Washington officials “don’t want to castigate” the Philippine government.
Ermita said President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo could not be faulted that she was not doing enough to stem the killings as she has created Task Force Usig, the Melo Commission and even invited United Nations Special Rapporteur Philip Alston.
Ermita, who had lunch with US Ambassador Kristie Kenney last week, said the envoy appeared “satisfied with the steps being taken by the President” to resolve the killings.–Cynthia Balana Michael Lim Ubac, Inquirer
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March 8, 2007 @ 5:01 pm
WASHINGTON – The cases of unsolved and unpunished killings have contributed to a “climate of impunity” in the Philippines, according to the US State Department.
In its Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2006, the State Department said that during the year, a number of unexplained killings in the Philippines were committed “apparently by elements of the security services and of political killings, including killings of journalists, by a variety of actors.”
The report released on Tuesday said civilian authorities generally maintained effective control of the security forces though some rogue elements committed human rights abuses.
“Many of these killings went unsolved and unpunished, contributing to a climate of impunity, despite intensified government efforts during the year to investigate and prosecute these cases,” the report said.
The report said aside from killing government officials and civilians, communist rebels were suspected in many of the deaths of left-wing activists.
The NPA, as well as some Islamic separatist groups, was also responsible for a number of illegal detentions, often in connection with informal courts set up to try military personnel, police, local politicians, and other persons for “crimes against the people,” the report added.
The State Department said arbitrary or warrantless arrests and detentions were common in the Philippines.
“Corruption was a problem in all the institutions making up the criminal justice system, including police, prosecutorial, and judicial organs,” the report said.
The report said trials were delayed and procedures were prolonged, while the prisoners are awaiting trial and those already convicted were often held under “primitive” conditions.
Leftwing and human rights activists were often subject to harassment by local security forces, the report added.
The report said the New People’s Army (NPA) assassinated local government officials, soldiers, police officers and ordinary civilians, and were suspected in many of the killings of leftwing activists.
The NPA and terrorist groups also sent children into combat, the report added.
The State Department cited reports of widespread corruption among prison guards.
“Corruption appeared to be a problem at higher levels of authority within the prison system as well,” the report said. “Favored inmates reportedly enjoyed access to prostitutes and drugs.”
“Guards sometimes demanded that prisoners pay to receive food, to use sanitary facilities, and to avoid beatings by other prisoners. Jail administrators reportedly delegated to senior inmates authority to maintain order.”
The report said prison conditions in the Philippines were “rudimentary and sometimes harsh.”
Provincial jails and prisons were overcrowded, lacked basic infrastructure, and provided prisoners with an inadequate diet, the report added.
The report said jails managed by the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology in Metro Manila usually operated at about 240 percent of designed capacity.
A jail decongestion program resulted in the early release, using applicable laws, of more than 3,500 inmates, the report added.
The BJMP’s establishment of new facilities for women inmates and its implementation of the new law on juvenile justice also contributed to the decrease in jail overcrowding from 2005, the report said.
The report said prison administrators budgeted a daily subsistence allowance of about $0.78 (P40) per prisoner.
Prison inmates often depended on their families for food because of the insufficient subsistence allowance and the need to bribe guards to receive food rations, the report added.
Meanwhile, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) has recorded 12 journalists killed last year, the report said.
In its 2005 Country Reports on Human Rights released last year, the State Department report named the PNP as the “worst abuser” of human rights in the country.
The US State Department said human rights abuses remain pervasive in the country and that the administration’s “pervasive weakness” in enforcing the rule of law as well as “official impunity.”
Quoting the Commission on Human Rights, the report said the PNP is the “worst abuser of human rights” because of “arbitrary, unlawful, and extrajudicial killings by elements of the security services; political killings, including journalists, by a variety of actors, which often go unpunished; disappearances.”
The US State Department reviews human rights practices in 196 countries.
The country report was based on the incidents reported and events that transpired last year.
It did not take into account the developments in the country this year and after President Arroyo’s declaration of Proclamation 1017 that placed the country under a state of national emergency on Feb. 24, 2006, when police arrested leftist leaders and critics of Mrs. Arroyo.
The CHR investigated 296 complaints of killings between January and November, compared with a total of 453 complaints of killings in 2005.
In Angeles City in Pampanga, Armed Forces Northern Luzon Command (Nolcom) chief Lt. Gen. Bonifacio Ramos challenged yesterday human rights groups to also probe the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP)-NPA in Central Luzon whom he accused of committing at least 290 “violent incidents,” including 115 murders in the past five years.
“NPA killings or executions constitute about 46 percent of the total number of such incidents that occurred in practically all provinces of the region,” he said.
Ramos said since 2002, violent incidents included 115 killings of 43 civilians, 10 suspected military assets or informers, 10 NPA “purgings,” three retired police or armed forces personnel, 14 barangay officials, five militiamen, 21 policemen and nine soldiers.
“Human rights violations committed by the CPP-NPA seem to be sidestepped by Karapatan and other supposedly independent investigative bodies because their focus is on the alleged accountability of the military with regards to the unexplained killings in the country,” he said.
Records show that from 2002 up to the present, the NPA in Central Luzon perpetrated some 290 violent incidents, ranging from ambushes, harassments, raids, attacks, liquidations, arson, disarming incidents, ransackings and abductions, he added.
Ramos said NPA murder victims include five Armed Forces and police officers:
• Superintendent Tomas San Miguel de Armas, chief of police of Angat, Bulacan who was murdered in Porac, Pampanga in March 2005;
• 1Lt. Jerry Morado who was shot dead by the NPA while he was negotiating for the surrender of some NPA rebels in Barangay Sapang Uwak, Porac, Pampanga in March 2005;
• 2Lt. Rolly Aganon who was killed in Guimba, Nueva Ecija in September 2005;
• Inspector Antonio Cortez was murdered in San Jose City in February 2006; and
• 1Lt. Paul Fortuny, who was slain in Calumpit, Bulacan in July 2006.
“It is grossly unfair for Karapatan and other self-proclaimed protectors of human rights to turn a deaf ear if a soldier or a police gets killed by the NPA,” he said.
“The message that Karapatan is conveying to the public is very clear – It is all right to suffer and die in the hands of the enemy if you are with the government. Please be reminded that soldiers and police have their rights, too, just like any ordinary citizen of this republic.”
Ramos said families of innocent civilians and those who have renounced their ties with the NPA had to suffer in the hands of the rebels, while human rights groups pretend to be oblivious of their predicament.
“Have you ever heard Karapatan denounce the killings of rebel returnees or condemn the bloody purging of CPP, NPA, and the National Democratic Front members?” he asked.
Ramos mentioned Lope Lapusan, a former NPA leader in Tarlac whose son, also an NPA member, was killed by their comrades “simply because his father decided to abandon their armed struggle.”
“The elder Lapusan exposed several atrocities perpetrated by the NPA in the province including the murder of some barangay officials and other members of the community who defied the enemy’s imposition,” he said.
Charges were filed in court against the suspects, but that the case has not progressed due to lack of witnesses, he added.
Ramos accused the NPA not only of killings, but also of “economic sabotage” by destroying vital communications facilities and other infrastructure.
The NPA is responsible for the burning of construction equipment in Aurora and Bulacan, Globe cell sites in Bataan, Pampanga and Tarlac, and passenger buses in Bataan, Bulacan, Tarlac and Nueva Ecija, he added.
These incidents were in retaliation for the refusal of owners of the properties to yield to the NPA’s demands for “revolutionary taxes,” which he dismissed as extortion, Ramos said.
—Jose Katigbak And Pia-Lee Brago, The Philippine STAR with Ding Cervantes
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March 9, 2007 @ 4:58 pm
Malacañang took as “constructive criticism from an ally” the human rights report of the United States government describing the Philippines as being under a climate of impunity as far as the issue of unsolved killings is concerned.
Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye assured the international community that the Philippine government “upholds democracy and human rights as strongly as it cherishes freedom and free enterprise.”
Malacañang did not deny the problem of unexplained killings which has hounded the administration, most particularly in the past year.
Bunye reiterated President Arroyo is addressing the issue of unexplained killings.
He pointed out Mrs. Arroyo made all efforts to address the issue by establishing special courts that would hear all cases of unexplained killings.
The presidential directive also fielded special prosecutors to handle the cases and strengthened the government’s Witness Protection Program (WPP).
The President has also tasked the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) to put up strict internal controls.
Bunye said the presidential directives were based on the recommendations of the Melo Commission which separately investigated the spate of unexplained murders of militant activists and journalists.
In the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2006 issued by the US State Department, it stated that in the Philippines “many of these killings went unsolved and unpunished, contributing to a climate of impunity, despite intensified government efforts during the year to investigate and prosecute these cases.”
The report also noted that communist rebels were also behind the murder of government officials, civilians and in some cases, former comrades.
Bunye said the government remains focused on wiping out the communist New People’s Army (NPA) and the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP).
"At the same time, we are increasing the legal, counter-propaganda and operational measures against the CPP-NPA to end the trail of mass murder and mayhem the revolutionary left has inflicted upon our people," Bunye said.
"The Philippines has had a history of violence over the past decades that we aim to deal with and put in the past, adhering to strict standards of criminal justice and human rights, with justice under the rule of law and we welcome all the assistance we can get from our allies and partners for a safer and more secure world," he added. –The Philippine STAR
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March 12, 2007 @ 4:58 pm
The United States Senate is set to start an investigation into hundreds of unexplained killings in the Philippines.
An announcement on the US Senate website said the initial inquiry would be conducted by the East Asian and Pacific Affairs subcommittee at 2:30 p.m. (Washington time) at Room SD-419 of the US Congress.
The investigation aims “to examine strategies to end the violence relating to extrajudicial killings in the Philippines,” the announcement said.
The inquiry was arranged by Sen. Barbara Boxer, a Democratic deputy whip and an influential member of the foreign relations committee, upon request by Filipino-American organizations in the US and by militant groups here.
US authorities, including Ambassador Kristie Kenney, have recently expressed serious concern over the unabated political killings.
They have even expressed willingness to provide technical help in solving these cases, but Malacañang officials said they would ask for help when it is needed.
The projected inquiry by American senators followed the recent investigation conducted by UN human rights official Philip Alston, who blamed the killings on the military.
Alston lamented that the national officialdom was “in denial” on the killings.
One Filipino official invited to participate in the US Senate inquiry is House deputy minority leader and Bayan Muna Rep. Satur Ocampo, who has made himself scarce due to the issuance of a warrant for his arrest by a Leyte judge.
In a statement released by his staff yesterday, Ocampo said he would participate in Wednesday’s hearing in whatever way he can.
His staff said they are arranging how such participation could be made possible through hi-tech means of communication that are presently available to anyone wanting to use them.
"As president of Bayan Muna, the party to which 127 victims of extrajudicial killings belonged, I intend to participate in the US Senate hearing to help US senators and the American people understand the prevailing culture of impunity and the political persecution of duly elected party-list organizations,” Ocampo said.
“The global spotlight will now focus on Mrs. Arroyo’s bloodied iron-fist and disabuse her from a penchant to pretend as a democrat. The world will be able to confirm that Mrs. Arroyo is a poor imitation of Ferdinand Marcos,” he said.
He thanked Senator Boxer for arranging the US Senate inquiry.
"The Senate hearing is a result of the international uproar due to the Arroyo government’s refusal to order state security forces to dismantle death squads, and its violation of the rights of people’s organizations to operate freely without harassment," he said.
He noted that the US State Department and American churches and organizations have criticized the Arroyo government for the unsolved political killings.
The military blames many of the unexplained killings on communist guerrillas and their legal organizations, claiming these groups have been purging their ranks of suspected government spies.
It is in connection with an alleged purge more than two decades ago that a Leyte judge has ordered the arrest of Ocampo and other communist leaders. But Ocampo said he was in military detention at the time.
Depending on the result of the US Senate inquiry, future American government aid to the Philippines could be affected.
During the Marcos era, opponents of martial law and the dictatorship successfully lobbied with the Americans to cut financial help to the Marcos regime and to pressure the late president to hold elections in 1986 after a two-decade rule.–Jess Diaz, The Philippine STAR
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URL to article: http://www.tucp.org.ph/news/index.php/2007/03/us-senate-starts-rp-killings-probe/
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March 12, 2007 @ 4:57 pm
DAVAO CITY — A member of the Bayan Muna (People First) party-list who testified during the recent investigation by United Nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings Philip Alston was shot dead in front of her family in Misamis Oriental Saturday afternoon.
The victim, Siche Bustamante-Gandinao, 56, was also a member of the farmers’ group Misamis Oriental Farmers Association (MOFA) in Salay town.
During Alston’s visit to Mindanao, Gandinao appeared before him as a witness to the killing in February of her father-in-law, Dalmacio "Tatay Daki" Gadinao, then the provincial Bayan Muna chairman.
Like her father-in-law, Siche was actively involved in the campaign against militarization in their village because of alleged human rights abuses committed by soldiers against residents suspected of being rebels or rebel supporters.
The Saturday attack happened a few meters away from a military detachment in Sitio (sub-village) Nabuolan, Barangay (village) Guinalaban.
Gandinao was the third victim of political execution in Mindanao this year. She is also the 837th victim of extrajudicial killings since 2001, the year President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo assumed office, according to the count by the human rights group Karapatan.
Renato Pacaide, regional coordinator for the party-list Anakpawis in Davao del Sur, was also killed in Digos City two weeks ago.
A fact sheet prepared by lawyer Beverly Musni, chair of Karapatan-Northern Mindanao, said the victim was shot while she and her husband and children were walking home from their farm by a gunman onboard a motorcycle.
The human rights group said Elda, the victim’s daughter, saw the assailant tailing them after they passed the detachment.
The gunman, Karapatan said, overtook the victim and suddenly turned back and shot Gandinao hitting her in the chest before fleeing the crime scene in the direction of the detachment.
"Anselmito picked up the bloodied Siche while Elda continued shouting for help,” Karapatan said. “Many residents nearby heard her cries for help, including the barangay captain and barangay kagawad [councilors] of Barangay Guinalaban. Nobody responded. All that the barangay captain did was to call for a patrol car but said it could not be dispatched as this had been sent elsewhere.”
Another motorcycle approached but when Elda called for help, it drove by and went straight to the detachment.
Elda informed Karapatan that the same motorcycle returned with a red motorcycle. Riding on the second motorcycle was the man identified as the gunman, Karapatan said.
Shot four time, Gandinao died in Balingasag Hospital in Balingasag town, Misamis Oriental.
Musni, in her report, said that it had been the usual practice of the victim and her family to go to their farm in Nabuolan on weekdays.
At the time of her death, the victim was sickly, Karapatan said.–Jeffrey M. Tupas,Inquirer
Article printed from Trade Union Congress of the Philippines: http://www.tucp.org.ph/news
URL to article: http://www.tucp.org.ph/news/index.php/2007/03/witness-in-alston-probe-shot-dead-in-misamis-oriental/
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March 9, 2007 @ 4:58 pm
Malacañang took as “constructive criticism from an ally” the human rights report of the United States government describing the Philippines as being under a climate of impunity as far as the issue of unsolved killings is concerned.
Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye assured the international community that the Philippine government “upholds democracy and human rights as strongly as it cherishes freedom and free enterprise.”
Malacañang did not deny the problem of unexplained killings which has hounded the administration, most particularly in the past year.
Bunye reiterated President Arroyo is addressing the issue of unexplained killings.
He pointed out Mrs. Arroyo made all efforts to address the issue by establishing special courts that would hear all cases of unexplained killings.
The presidential directive also fielded special prosecutors to handle the cases and strengthened the government’s Witness Protection Program (WPP).
The President has also tasked the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) to put up strict internal controls.
Bunye said the presidential directives were based on the recommendations of the Melo Commission which separately investigated the spate of unexplained murders of militant activists and journalists.
In the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2006 issued by the US State Department, it stated that in the Philippines “many of these killings went unsolved and unpunished, contributing to a climate of impunity, despite intensified government efforts during the year to investigate and prosecute these cases.”
The report also noted that communist rebels were also behind the murder of government officials, civilians and in some cases, former comrades.
Bunye said the government remains focused on wiping out the communist New People's Army (NPA) and the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP).
"At the same time, we are increasing the legal, counter-propaganda and operational measures against the CPP-NPA to end the trail of mass murder and mayhem the revolutionary left has inflicted upon our people," Bunye said.
"The Philippines has had a history of violence over the past decades that we aim to deal with and put in the past, adhering to strict standards of criminal justice and human rights, with justice under the rule of law and we welcome all the assistance we can get from our allies and partners for a safer and more secure world," he added. –The Philippine STAR
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URL to article: http://www.tucp.org.ph/news/index.php/2007/03/palace-takes-as-constructive-criticism-us-report-on-killings/
______________________________________________________________________March 14, 2007 @ 5:19 pm
SINGAPORE—The Philippines is perceived as Asia’s most corrupt economy, with Thailand and Indonesia ranked second, a survey of 1,476 expatriates showed.
Singapore is seen as the least corrupt of 13 economies, followed by Hong Kong and Japan, according to the survey by Political and Economic Risk Consultancy Ltd., or PERC, which was conducted in the first two months of the year.
Most of Asia is struggling to fight corruption that’s been a constraint to business in the region. The Philippines, whose corruption score posted the steepest rise, has been getting the least amount of foreign direct investments and lower foreign capital flows to its stock market compared with Indonesia and Thailand, PERC said.
“The Philippines has the distinction of being perceived in the worst light this year,” Hong Kong-based PERC said. “It is bad and has been bad all along. People are just growing tired of the inaction and insincerity of leading officials when they promise to fight corruption.”
The Philippines got a score of 9.40 from 7.80 last year in the poll, which has a grading system of zero as the best possible score and 10 as the worst. Thailand, which has a junta-backed government after last September’s coup, is probably the country where corruption problems are most visible, PERC said.
Indonesia, deemed Asia’s most corrupt country in the past five years, improved its score to 8.03, the same as Thailand. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's campaign against corruption has yielded positive results, though it's being undermined by local-level officials, government bureaucrats and senior politicians, the report said.
Vietnam is the fourth most corrupt as the government is seen to take a selective approach to fighting corruption, the survey said. It scored 7.54 from last year’s 7.91. Vietnam was ranked the most corrupt economy in 2001.
“As in China, the biggest problem in Vietnam lies with state-owned companies and with people trying to use their positions to plunder state assets,” the survey said.
China, the world’s fastest growing-major economy, is the seventh most corrupt. The country’s score improved to 6.29 from last year’s 7.58 as tight media censorship probably helped, the report said.
India is the fifth most corrupt, followed by South Korea, PERC said, adding the Indian government must hasten reforms. India’s score improved to 6.67 from 6.76 last year.
Malaysia is perceived the eighth most corrupt country. Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi has permitted a more open discussion of the problem of graft, though he has yet to deliver on his campaign promise to cut corruption, PERC said.
Singapore, the least corrupt among the 13 economies for the 10th straight year, is increasingly becoming vulnerable to corruption in other countries as state-linked companies invest overseas, the report said.
The sale of Shin Corp. by investors, including the family of deposed Premier Thaksin Shinawatra, to Singapore’s state-owned company Temasek Holdings Pte., angered Thais because the family didn’t pay tax on the proceeds. Shin Corp., which was sold last year, owns the biggest Thai mobile-phone company.
Reacting to the report, President Arroyo said on Tuesday the findings of the latest PERC survey was apparently based on “old data” and biased media reports.
The President brushed aside the latest PERC survey results during an interview with business journalists and referred to the upbeat credit ratings given to the Philippines by foreign credit-rating agencies.
"The credit ratings are fine. As for political analysis, they work on old data, they don’t work on up-to-date data. And then they look at newspapers. And if you’re going to look at who are the ones in Transparency International Philippines, they are made up of opposition people,” she said.
Transparency International, also based in Hong Kong, had consistently given the Philippines low marks in fighting corruption.
Constancia de Guzman, chairman of the Presidential Anti graft Commission (PAGC), said that PERC itself noted that the survey results did not reflect a worsening of the actual situation in the Philippines.
"If we are to talk about the government programs on anti-corruption we have done, and are doing, a lot. This is observed by our stakeholders,” she said.
She cited a recent statement made by the American Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Amcham) expressing confidence in the Arroyo administration’s governance.
(Bloomberg, M. Gonzalez)
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__________________________________________________________________March 14, 2007 @ 5:21 pm
MANILA, Philippines — Despite the much-publicized efforts by the Arroyo administration to curb corruption, foreign businessmen perceive the Philippines to be the most corrupt economy among 13 countries and territories across Asia.
The Philippines replaced Indonesia as the country with “the distinction of being perceived in the worst light this year,” the Hong Kong-based Political and Economic Risk Consultancy said Tuesday in a summary of its survey that was made available to Agence France Presse (AFP).
PERC, which provides advice to private firms and governments, polled 1,476 expatriate businessmen in the region in January and February. Of the total, more than 100 were based in the Philippines.
The survey also found some countries were failing properly to tackle corruption.
In a grading system with zero as the best possible score and 10 the worst, the Philippines got 9.40, worsening sharply from its grade of 7.80 last year. Indonesia had been deemed Asia’s most corrupt country in 2006.
PERC said it had not noted a worsening in the actual situation in the Philippines despite its deteriorating score.
“It is bad and has been bad all along. People are just growing tired of the inaction and insincerity of leading officials when they promise to fight corruption,” it said.
When asked by PERC to assess how serious the corruption problem in the public sector was, Philippine-based foreign entrepreneurs gave an average score of nine.
Private sector good
Perceived corruption in the private sector was not as bad, however.
Aside from asking the expatriates to grade corruption in the public and private sectors, PERC had them assess the effectiveness of the judiciary in fighting corruption and the tolerance of average citizens toward corruption.
In a phone interview from Hong Kong, PERC managing director Robert Broadfoot said: “Respondents gave the private sector a score of 4.15, which is quite good.”
The interviewees were mostly Western businessmen and were in the trading, banking and manufacturing industries.
When PERC noticed the discrepancy between the distrust levels for the public and private sectors, it asked other expatriates, “major” Filipino businessmen and universities to explain why the respondents gave the public sector a bad rating, Broadfoot said.
Estrada trial, raps vs Arroyo
“Cited were unresolved cases like the corruption trial of deposed President Joseph Estrada. The case has been dragging on for years. Then there’s the opposition’s [corruption and electoral fraud] charges against President (Gloria) Macapagal-Arroyo,” Broadfoot told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Estrada was put on trial for plunder after he was ousted in 2001. He was charged with plunder for allegedly amassing some P4 billion in payoffs from illegal gambling operations, tobacco tax kickbacks and commissions.
Calls from various sectors, including the Church, that Ms Arroyo be investigated for allegedly cheating in the 2004 presidential election remain unheeded after impeachment complaints against her were defeated in the House of Representatives twice — in 2005 and 2006.
Inappropriate to compare
Broadfoot said credible corruption trials could convince businessmen that the Philippines was serious about fighting corruption.
The PERC managing director, however, said it might be inappropriate to compare the Philippines’ corruption rating with that of other Asian countries.
“The Philippines’ score was based only on interviews of expatriates in the country. [PERC] did not ask a single group of expatriates to give scores to all Asian countries,” he said.
Broadfoot said it would be better to compare the Philippines’ current corruption rating with its previous scores.
Singapore and Hong Kong were seen as the cleanest economies, while China, Indonesia and Vietnam posted improvements, said PERC.
Thai junta
The perception of corruption in Thailand worsened, with the military junta now in power after last September’s coup seen as being little better than the government it ousted.
Thailand and Indonesia, both with a grade of 8.03, shared the spot as Asia’s second most corrupt nations.
The junta that ousted Thaksin Shinawatra as Thailand’s prime minister last year promised to fight corruption "but there is no reason to be confident that its behavior will be any cleaner,” PERC said.
On Indonesia, PERC said President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's campaign to crack down on corruption had “produced some positive results, but he is still swimming against the current.”
The rankings of the 13 economies put Malaysia in the middle, marginally worse than last year.
"One of the big disappointments for many Malaysians is that Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has not been able or willing to follow through effectively with his campaign promise to reduce corruption," PERC said.
Media censorship in China
China and Vietnam bettered their scores, but PERC said that the improved perception was because corruption was not being discussed openly.
"The media in both China and Vietnam are subject to tight censorship. The only bad news the governments want published is news that they see fit for public consumption,” it said.
China was the seventh most corrupt nation, according to the survey, up two places from last year. Vietnam was in 10th place out of 13, also up two places.
India was in ninth place. PERC said the Indian government must accelerate reforms, warning that corruption could limit companies’ expansion plans.
Singapore again just beat regional rival Hong Kong as the cleanest economy, although the latter posted a sharp improvement from its image in 2006.
This may have resulted from a perception that “the differences between Hong Kong and (mainland) China are even starker now,” Broadfoot said.
Singapore is becoming increasingly vulnerable to corruption elsewhere, the PERC report said, citing the soured investment by Temasek Holdings, a state-linked investment firm, in Thai telecom giant Shin Corp.
The tax-free sale of Shin Corp. to Temasek by the Thaksin family fueled the political crisis that led to the military taking power in Thailand.
Another problem, according to the report, is that foreigners “who have profited from corruption elsewhere in Asia sometimes seek a haven for their ill-gotten gains” in Singapore, where rich Indonesian families hold massive assets.
Indonesia pleased
Indonesia was pleased that its image had improved.
"I think there is enough basis for that rating, because there have now been a lot of anti-corruption policies put in place," said Teten Masduki, chair of Indonesia Corruption Watch.
He said reforms were beginning to yield results within the government, including in curbing corrupt practices and promoting transparency.
"Of course we are happy," said Johan S.P. Budi, spokesperson for Indonesia’s National Anti-Corruption Committee.
"At least it shows the seriousness of the government in its efforts to improve its image and in curbing corruption," he said.
Conflicts of interest
Somchai Jitsuchon, director of macroeconomics at the Thailand Development Research Institute, said he was not surprised by the findings, which related mainly to the Thaksin era.
“Circumstantial evidence has clearly shown that there is no improvement in terms of policy corruption, while emerging conflicts of interest got worse during Thaksin’s government,” Somchai told AFP.
He said policies endorsed during Thaksin’s administration overwhelmingly benefited certain business groups, especially those owned by Thaksin himself.
"Given the limited tenure of this interim government, the chance of corruption rising further is minimal. But it doesn't mean all these bureaucrats would not become corrupt if they had a chance," Somchai said.–Cyril Bonabente, Inquirer Agence France-Presse
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